66. Chapter Sixty-Six
66
CHAPTER SIXTY-SIX
BASTIAN
M y bare feet hit the floor before my eyes had even had a chance to open properly, the panic that flooded my body propelling me forward. Leading me on with barely a conscious thought.
Racing down the empty hall, I slammed to a stop by his door, heart pounding as I placed my hand on the handle, letting my magik feed into the locks. They had barely clicked open before I pushed into the room.
Kaius’ screams filled the air the moment I did, the sound slicing into my heart as I ran to the bedroom at the back of the open space.
Barrelling into his room, my magik flooded the air in anticipation, and as another cry of agony tore through him, I rushed to the bed, watching as his body writhed in agony under the covers, his eyes firmly shut. Both of us were bathed by the faint green glow that touched everything thanks to the jumble of plants that grew over the windows.
Fear slammed into me as understanding bled through my panic. Once again, I was witness to the darkness that tormented him in sleep. Of the past that pushed through to brutalise him all over again.
It was a cruel twist of fate that he suffered like this. As if he hadn’t been put through enough, he was now subjected to this torture even in sleep. The years had passed, and the physical scars had long since faded, but the ones carved on the inside of his mind were still there. Just waiting for the moment his defences were down before they split open, breaking him apart over and over.
I wasn’t sure how I knew he had needed me.
I did know I couldn’t wake him; we had learnt early on that it only did more harm.
For too long, he had hidden it from me when he first came to Incaendium, years spent trying to deal with it on his own until I figured it out.
After I had, I promised to find a way to help him, and when we weren’t in training or busy with prince nonsense, that’s what I did.
We tried everything. Tonics, teas, working out until we could barely make it to our beds before passing out. None of it made a difference; Kaius was still caught in his past once sleep had him. Caught back with him .
“Fuck,” I hissed, running my hands through my hair, spinning around the room searching. For anything.
A silver bowl on a dresser half hidden by leaves caught my eye, and I picked it up, sniffing at the days-old powdery ashes that lay inside.
Ground valerian root…
My heart dropped as I realised what he had been doing, that this wasn’t the first night he had been back in his own hell. Burning valerian root wouldn’t stop the dreams, but it would stop the screams. Paralysing his body while leaving his mind wide open. Which also meant no one would know what was happening to him.
How long had he been hiding this?
Kaius shouted out again, back arching off the bed as his eyes flicked back and forth beneath his lids, witness to pain I would never know. The valerian must have worn off, or he hadn’t used it tonight.
Sleeping together helped. Being with someone else would keep them at bay for longer than anything else we tried. I considered climbing in next to him, but it had never been enough.
I had even tried to make a talisman once to hang over his bed, but apparently when you use hickory wood instead of maple, and moldavite instead of Labradorite, all it did was summon a lesser demon pet puppy.
I was twelve, I didn’t know what the fuck I was doing.
At least we’d had fun chasing the fluff ball around before my father caught wind of it and dragged an Enchanter here to banish it.
It wasn’t until years later I managed to track down another Enchanter and pay a ridiculous amount of coin for them to charm a raw emerald with a powerful blocking spell, that he finally found peace. I’d even paid extra to have the silver inlays infused with chamomile oil.
I’d never told him exactly how much it had cost, afraid he would refuse to wear it, or try to pay me back. He could afford it, but I didn’t want his money.
And every single auros was worth it when after countless years of torture, Kaius woke that next morning rested.
Unhaunted.
Which is why this shouldn’t be happening.
Why had it stopped working?
Was there some sort of time limit on the pendant I was unaware of?
Kaius thrashed against the bed as I watched helplessly, his jaw clenched tight enough I was certain he would break teeth as he was forced to relive his past, the blankets slipping down revealing his tattooed chest.
And no fucking necklace.
I froze as magik surged under my skin, and I fought hard to keep it contained as panic amplified the pressure. I knew there was no point searching the blankets to see if it had fallen off. The chain was unbreakable; I’d requested it myself.
I’d tested it myself.
Why the fuck would he take it off? It obviously didn’t work if he didn’t fucking have it.
And as if gifted by Suri herself, a memory flooded my mind. Of yesterday, just me and Elodie in that room that was all too small, yet the space between us was a chasm I could never cross.
Of her touching something that lay hidden beneath the fabric of her clothing.
Flames crackled over my skin. I quickly backed away from the bed before I lost control and set something alight like I was nothing but a child. My emotions over-ruled all rational thought when it came to her.
Why would he put himself through this for her?
I knew something had been going on between them the last few days, but just how deep was he with her to do something like this?
Pulling back the fire from my skin, I slipped from the room soundlessly. Heading for the door as a scream of agony ripped through me, and I gritted my teeth against the anger that had flames dancing across my vision.
My feet pounded into the thick carpet that blanketed this wing, the heat of it soaking into my bare skin. Or maybe that was just the heat of the magik that made me who I am.
I skidded to a stop in front of her door, my chest heaving as I grappled for control that was quickly slipping from my grip.
I hadn’t been granted access to her rooms. I didn’t want it. But now, there was nothing that was going to stop me getting through this door. I was Prince of this fucking palace, and no door was closed to me. I slammed my hand above the handle, forcing magik into the locks and willing the palace to bend to my will. It would, but not without a fight.
Under the influence of my fire-filled magik, the lock clicked open, and I shouldered into the dark room, the scent of honey and cinnamon clinging to every surface. It was sickly sweet.
I breathed through my mouth.
As I reached the door I knew she slept behind, my anger was a living, breathing thing coiled inside me—ready to strike her at the barest nudge.
Elodie startled upright as the door slammed into the wall, bouncing back towards me with force, but I was already past its reach. Her bone-white hair was a tousled mess, and grey sheets tangled around her waist—just how they were the first time I laid eyes on her. At least this time, she was fully clothed.
She furiously blinked away sleep as her dark eyes swept over the room, magik already trickling from her body as her face scrunched in confusion. That was until they landed on me, standing in her room half naked, heat rolling from my skin. They narrowed into a glare that would send an ordinary Fae running.
But I was no ordinary Fae, and I wasn’t about to leave without getting what I came here for.
Before she could form a thought to react, I sent out ropes of fire towards her. Her eyes flew wide and she choked on a scream, as she was slammed into the mattress, the flames pinning her down, her hands level with her face. I stalked to the bed vibrating with magik, and it was fear now that filled her gaze. Something inside of me reared up at that look in her eyes, trying to turn the path I was barrelling down, but I pushed it back.
It didn’t like that that look was directed at me. That I was the one who put it there.
She looked so small against the oversized bed she slept in as I loomed over her, and part of me knew I should have handled this differently, but a bigger part could barely think over its fury.
I couldn’t hear her shouts or the vitriol I was sure was spilling from her lips. I could only hear Kaius’ phantom screams thudding through my mind.
The ropes wouldn’t hurt her, though her chest heaved as she struggled against them. The outline of a necklace under her tight top put a stop to any hesitation that I had felt. I lunged towards her neck, her cry for me to stop unfulfilled. The flash of terror that swept over her face punched into my soul, and there was a voice screaming from inside me to let her go.
It wasn’t loud enough.
I hooked my finger around the silver chain as it slid free of her clothing, the pendant slipping into my hand, clenching it in my fist at the confirmation that Kaius’ pain was all her fucking fault.
That was enough to ignore the voice completely.
The emerald grew heavy in my palm, much heavier than I knew it was, as if it wanted to be back against her skin.
Yeah, fuck that.
Despite how much I wanted to, I couldn’t rip it from her neck, instead I used the flaming ropes to yank her forward, pulling it free and letting her head thud back into the pillows. I made the mistake then of meeting her eyes, and the fury I found there blazed hotter than any flame I could conjure.
Beads of sweat gathered on her brow, and while her restraints were little more than ropes of light, I knew heat was billowing from my body—fed by the anger coursing through my veins. The air shimmered with it, distorting the room around me until the only clear view I had was of her.
“Let me go,” she hissed, with a venom that penetrated my skin, and the sound cut through the roaring in my head.
Ripping myself from her bed, I ignored her request, forcing away the need to do as she asked. With Kaius’ necklace dangling from my hand, I left, focusing on where I had to be and not on the shouts of anger that followed me. I didn’t let my magik drop until I was in the corridor, barely feeling the flames rush back to me as I let myself back into Kaius’ room, running straight for his bed.
Kaius’ screams had turned to whimpers, agony etched into his features as he fought himself, and I stood over him with the necklace, ready to put it back where it should be. To end this.
But what would he do if he found out I’d taken it from her? Give it back?
He must have his reasons, even if I didn’t give a fuck what they were. Would this just push him closer to her?
I fisted my hair, as I struggled to think over the sound of his pain as it wrapped around my heart.
Was just having the pendant here enough to keep the dreams at bay, at least a little? I eyed the emerald hanging from my hand, then my eyes flicked back to Kaius. It seemed that way, while his body was still tense and lines of pain were carved into his perfect face, he was no longer screaming like he was being flayed alive.
I shuddered at the thought of what was happening inside his mind, knowing it wasn’t far from the truth, and making a decision I hoped would work.
Sinking to my knees by his side I gently lifted the mattress, sliding my hand underneath and hiding the pendant, hoping its influence would soon kick in—as much as was possible without it being around his neck. The anger that had fuelled me melted away, replaced by a despair that hollowed out my chest, and left me empty as I prayed to Suri that it would be enough.
I sat back on the hard floor, leaning my head back against the mattress. I couldn’t be here when he woke, but I couldn’t leave him yet. I would stay. I failed at taking his pain away, so I would bear witness to it. Ensure he was never alone while he shouldered it, even if he never knew.